Here, I would like to briefly thank those that made the effort to see Aether rebuilt and open again in a full realization of its new theme:

* Thank you, Astraea for creating this wonderful world, and to all those that contributed to its original creation.

* Thanks to Eos, Bat Kol, Herne, Yemoja, Pheme and Jenean who put significant effort into the rebuilding of the new setting and edited news files.

* Thanks to Bast and Puck, without whom we would have NO CODE after starting the DB from scratch. They did an amazing job porting things over to a new database, updated and fixing many problems, and working with a frazzled, disorganized person who did very little to give them positive direction--thank you for managing to do fantastic work despite the difficulties.

And to all the old and new players of Aether and all the contributions they have made over time, thank you! Aether would not be half as rich and as deep as it is today without all the time, effort, hopes and tears that you have poured into this game.

A letter from Astraea:

I realized, as I got to thinking about how many people had contributed to the game, that it was probably a Herculean task to name them all. Still, I've done my best. If I've overlooked anyone, it was not intentional, and I invite you to help jog my memory -- this isn't an Academy Awards speech, after all, and I've got all the space I want. So drop me a line, either on the game, or via e-mail, if you'd like to have your particular contribution added. I'd like to be as thorough as possible, for my own benefit if nothing else.

So, all that being said, special thanks go out to these people:

The Staff:
The Coders: Danu, Seth, Puck, and Bast -- and Seth in particular, for designing the "Mistress System" that saved us all so much typing and made things so convenient!

The Site Admin:
Argon oh-so-generously allowed us to host Aether on his site at mux.net for so many years, along with this colossal website, and it was all free-of-charge.

Atlantean Admin:
Asherah (a.k.a Luna), Atargatis, Mariham (before she joined the air-heads and changed her name), Nuada, Susanoo,and Yemoja -- and special thanks to Susanoo for designing the original Atlantean page, Asherah for designing the current one, and Yemoja for establishing so much about Pasiphae and the Atlantean religion.

Delphi Admin:
Aker, Bat Kol, Cerridwen, and Luna -- the latter of whom designed the Magic page and the original Delphi page, neither of which, unfortunately, exist online anymore.

Empyrean Admin:
Bat Kol, Eos, Helios, and Pheme; with the Empyreans being traditionally one of our most popular races, these admin often had to work double-time, but they did it so well. Pheme kindly helped run the Empyrean website for a while, before Eos took it over and re-hauled it with a gorgeous new design, and Helios wrote the original Empy FAQ page, which inspired the website.

Sylvan Admin:
Bacchus, Chibiabos, Eleggua, Herne, Izpapalotl, Michabo, and Morrigan, with a special thank-you toward Bacchus for designing one of the original (and unfortunately-defunct) Sylvan sites, Eleggua for his work with the Eyotajolon, and Herne for coming up with all the info for the Aelfar.

Varati Admin:
Aker, Anubis, Bacchus, Bat Kol, Hecate, Inanna, and Izha -- all of whom did such wonderful jobs, though Inanna's Varati Art and Ushasti websites (both unfortunately inactive), Anubis' Agni-Haidar page, and Hecate's dedication to maintaining the Varati website all deserve special praise. Bat Kol also came up with ideas for an Aztec-based Varati race, though it unfortunately never impacted the game. And last but not least, we can't forget Anubis' wonderfully-helpful Terms Database, which made looking up all those crazy terms so much easier for Aether's players!

Finally, this handful of people helped out tremendously in Aether's early stages, before it had even opened: Adar for his diligent research; Daedalus, Serpentis, and Susan for assisting with the initial code; Muse for writing the building files, Rhonda Peters for advice on etiquette; Brigit, Isora, Shelley, Sin, Toad, Vodyanoi, and Yama for their ideas and inspiration; Appolonia, Cal, Craft, Maga, Muse, Pelagria, Raziel, S'larra, Strongbow, and Suri for their assistance with building and descriptions; and Kane for building the city's initial grid and designing Aether I's website, which -- although it expanded over the four years of Aether's run -- never deviated from his original layout.

The Players: (In alphabetical order):

Apollonius: For writing and "performing" a whole play online! There's been some amazing roleplay on Aether, but in terms of personal effort and commitment, that just takes the cake.

Cynara: For her unflagging efforts with the Outcast faction, and for typically being one of the most active VIPs.

Deianyra: She contributed lots of helpful and inspirational material for the Rusalki during the Fimbulwinter plot.

Demetrius: This swashbuckling pirate helped establish the Buccaneer faction, for which he made a website; not to mention all his help with the last big TP -- the Odyssey.

Drusus, Eranthe, Longinius/Khalid II, and Raziel: for their beautiful artwork that's been scattered throughout the news files.

Elyaena: For her early efforts to keep a running Aether Timeline online.

Faisal: Without him, the Agni-Haidar likely wouldn't have become the brutal, stoic warriors we know and love.

Fenimos: For creating the Gladiators of Aether page, which is still up to this day.

Ianthe: She designed the Avalon page, for the "free nation" of mongrels established after the War TP.

Kalypso: For writing her Gryphon FAQ page that helped inform players about those sturdy Empyrean steeds. And -- although it proved to be a bane to my existence for so long! -- for suggesting the idea of the Casting Call gallery.

Khalid I/III: For writing and establishing so much of the Varati information, and for his support and encouragement in general.

Kuronbo & Shinjukou: The two of them really helped revitalize the Atlantean sphere for a time, and helped establish tons of new information about that race.

Livia: For the gorgeous House of Flowers website, that's regrettably no longer online.

Lysander: The War TP was largely his doing (blame him!), at least in terms of establishing information, creating oodles of helpful maps, conducting historical research, and driving the plot.

Nox: He wrote the New Player FAQ, that I'm sure proved helpful to many a clueless newbie. He's even written less-informative-but-highly-entertaining stuff, like the Aether Purity Test.

Raijin: For maintaining the Delphic Citadel and Magic websites; and Cepheus' player should get special mention for so generously hosting them.

Riva: Not only did she help out with the Atlanteans a great deal, she created the very entertaining Aether Sims Photo Album, which is unfortunately no longer active.

Selene: Even before she became staff, she earned my admiration for her gorgeous websites, including the Empyrean Art Page, the Temple Project, and her Aether Websets.

Thalia II: For her dedication and consistent efforts with the Varati sphere, for helping to come up with the Plague plot, and for her general activity and perseverance.

As I said above, I'm sure I'm overlooking some important contributions, and again, I hope you'll be kind enough to remind me. I may have built the framework for the game, but it's all the players and staff, over Aether's four-year run, who really created it. It's something I never could have done alone, and I'd like to thank all of you for your part in it.